


Tadelsa Week

by blunaowl



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014), Frozen (2013)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-02
Updated: 2015-03-08
Packaged: 2018-03-17 03:45:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3514130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blunaowl/pseuds/blunaowl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My submissions for Tadelsa Week on tumblr, organised by the wonderful thearendork!</p>
<p>Monday's prompt - The first time they see each other</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Asking For Directions

“Tadashi? Can you mind the front for a bit?”

“Sure thing, Aunt Cass!”

Tadashi pushed himself back from the desk, grateful for the enforced break. He’d been staring at his sketchpad for hours and was no closer to deciding on a design for his new project. Standing up, he let out a yawn, stretched, causing his back to pop from being hunched forward for so long. He rubbed his neck, closed the cover of his sketchbook and slid his pencil behind his left ear before making his way down.

He joined Aunt Cass at the foot of the stairs, taking her waist apron and heading behind the counter as she headed up to the upper floors. There were a few people in the café, regulars. They gave Tadashi a wave, he waved back. They went back to their conversation, he went to top up the doughnut display. Tuesday evenings were normally quiet, routine, uneventful.

Normally.

The bell above the door jingled as the door opened. Tadashi looked up from the counter to greet the newcomer, the hand he was raising in greeting coming a stop in mid air, his casual grin faltering.

A young woman had walked in, probably a year or so younger than Tadashi himself, wearing jeans, a greyish-blue hooded top that was far too thin for the cool of the late summer evening, and sneakers only just lighter than her platinum blonde braid.  A backpack slung low on her back, roller case in one hand and what looked like a phone in the other, she looked cautiously around the café before entering fully, giving Tadashi the time he needed to realise he was still gawking and put on his customer service face.

“Hey there!”  _That’s a grimace, not a grin, you idiot…!_  “What can I get you?”  
The woman looked directly at him, and even from the other side of the café he could clearly make out her  _gorgeous_  blue eyes… and the rather worried look she was wearing. He frowned, and made his way to stand in front of the counter.

“Is… everything alright?”

The movement seemed to snap her out of… whatever it was, and she took a deep breath.

“Uhm… sorry, I uh… I wondered if you could help me out. I’m… I’m looking for an address, but my phone’s died and…”

“… you were using the map on your phone?”

She shrugged, and gave a sheepish smile that made Tadashi’s heart skip a beat.

“W-…why don’t you come grab a seat and we can try and sort out a map for you?” He pulled out a chair at one of the window-side tables and waited for the blonde to sit before jogging back behind the counter. There was the rattle of ceramic against metal, the hiss of steam, and a minute or so later Tadashi reappeared by the table, a mug of coffee in one hand, a plate with a doughnut in the other.

“Here,” He put the drink and pastry down on the table in front of her, before pulling out the pad from his Aunt’s waist apron and sitting down opposite her. “On the house.”

“Wait, what? N-no, I couldn’t.”

“Well, judging by your luggage, you’ve travelled quite a way, so consider it a welcome to San Fransokyo.” When she still looked reluctant, he leaned forward a little bit, “… it’s chocolate?”.

There was a pause, but politeness seemed to win out, and she cradled the mug in her hands with a quiet thank you and a smile.

“So. Where’re you headed?”

The blonde dug around in her pocket and pulled out a well-worn burgundy passport, and passed him a piece of paper from between the pages. Years of rescuing his brother from ‘bot fights had given him knowledge of the city that would put a taxi driver to shame – he looked at the address, retrieved his pencil from behind his ear and starting drawing on the pad.

Not wanting to just sit there in silence, he cast a quick glance at the gold lettering of her passport – he couldn’t work out the unfamiliar language, but it looked similar to something he’d seen in one of Fred’s comic and books – then at the tag on the handle of the roller case at the girl’s side. “OSL?”

A pause. “Oslo.”

“Aah… Norway?”

A nod.

 _That explains the accent…_  “Are you… visiting family?”

A pause… then biting her lip and looking down at the table, the blonde shook her head, her bangs swaying slightly in front her eyes.

_Change the topic change the topic change the topic-_

“… Aunt Cass’s doughnuts are best when they’re still warm, y’know.”

She looked at the untouched doughnut, and methodically removed one of her hands from her –  _wait, gloves? But her hoody’s so_  thin _…_  She seemed to hesitate slightly, before picking the pastry up and taking a bite.

_…stop watching her eat, you weir-_

A lopsided grin slowly spread across her face and for a few seconds, Tadashi couldn’t remember his own name, let alone what he was supposed to be drawing.

A cough and a low chuckle from the other side of the café brought him out of his daze, and he hastily finished off the map, ripping it from the pad. “H-here. We’re uhm… we’re here. This is where you’re headed. It’s not far; just follow this route,” he drew an arrow along the streets she needed to take, making sure it would keep her well away from any potential trouble spots, “and you’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.”

The worried look she’d entered with had all but disappeared by this point, and she smiled gratefully at him. “Thank you.”

“Hey. S’no problem. Happy to help.” Tadashi heard Aunt Cass’s footsteps coming back down the stairs, her sing-song voice floating down the hall, and he reluctantly pushed his chair back from the table. “I hope your stay in San Fran is a great one. I uhm… I gotta go… do… y’know… café things.”

She chuckled, and Tadashi was so  _very_  glad he was still sat down. “Of course. Thank you.”

“No problem. Enjoy your coffee.”

…

_Move, Tadashi._

_…_

_MOVE._

He got up from the chair, just as Aunt Cass came into view behind the counter. He walked over pulling the apron from his waist, and passed it back to her, receiving a pat on the shoulder as thanks… but then she frowned and gave his shoulder a small squeeze when she caught the bewildered expression on his face.

“Everything alright?”

“Yeah,” he said, turning to look over his shoulder at the table he’d just left. “Yeah, everything’s f-”

She’d gone, leaving a full mug of coffee and an empty plate.

“… fine.”

He’d forgotten to ask her name.


	2. Déjà Vu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tuesday - First meeting

“…is just one of our lab floors, but… once you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them al…” Callaghan’s voice became muffled as he moved from the corridor into another room.

“Ah ha.” Fred grinned, sitting the right way up in his well-worn armchair, “The newbies are here.”

“Ooh! I didn’t get to go to the expo this year – I can’t wait to meet them!” Honey Lemon peered down the corridor, trying to catch a glimpse of the tour group as it meandered through the rooms, before heading to a large door and knocking. “Tadashi! They’re here!”

“…. uh huh.”

Rolling her eyes, she opened the door. “Tadashi. The new students. They’re here.”

“Yyyep.” He didn’t move an inch, still hunched over his sketchpad, technical drawings littered all over the table. The area surrounding his swivel chair was covered in pencil shavings and rubbings, scrunched up balls of paper and old post-it notes.

“Ta-”

“Tadashi!” A pop. “Are you coming or what?” GoGo stalked into the lab, grabbing the back of his chair.

“Just gimme a se- woah!”

“Let’s  _go_ , slowpoke.” Pushing Tadashi in front of her, GoGo made her way to the door, passed various experiments and out into the common area, where the rest of their closest friends had gathered. She tipped the chair slightly and Tadashi fell off onto the rug, narrowly missing the wooden crate they used as a coffee table.

“They best not be messy.”

“Oh come  _on,_  Wasabi, loosen up!” Fred gave the broad-shouldered student a playful whack on the arm, “I’m sure they’ll keep well away from your scarily tidy area. Because you know… it’s scary.”

“It’s  _organised,_  Fred. And at least  _one_  of these new guys is going to call me-”

“And this is the common area,” Callaghan’s voice suddenly sounded a lot closer. “Ah, and here are some of your classmates. This is-”

“If you’ll allow me, Mr. Callaghan.” Fred pushed himself up off the chair and suddenly a large green dinosaur was centre-stage.

Callaghan chuckled. “By all means, Fred.”

Clearing his throat, Fred slowly walked over to the lone, bemused looking student stood just beside her tutor. There was a pause, before he swung open his arms, the head of his suit bobbing slightly behind him. “Welcome! To the _best_  nerd school in all of San Fransokyo!”

Pop. “It’s the  _only_  “nerd school” in all of San Fransokyo.”

Fred dropped his arms slightly and looked over his shoulder at his heckler, scowling slightly. “Don’t ruin the moment..!” He turned back to the newcomer, turning his huge claws on his hands in on himself. “The name’s Fred; school mascot by day, but by night… I’m also school mascot. And I am here for the _science_  .”

Pop. “Trying to transform yourself into Godzilla’s crazy twin isn’t science.”

“The  _party pooper_  back there is GoGo Tomago. Need anything sped up, she’s your gal.” After a non-committal wave from GoGo, Fred moved on. “This is Honey Lemon. Chemistry is her bag. Literally. I  _swear_  she’s got a small chemistry set in there.”

Honey grinned and gave an enthusiastic wave, “Hola! It’s so nice to meet you!”

“And I’m-”

“Wasabi! Don’t let that angry face fool you; he’s a teddy bear really. Just… don’t touch his tools.” Ignoring the grumbles of “One time!”, Fred moved on.

“And last but not least, our resident robo-nerd, Tadashi!”

Fred turned to face his friend, as he had done with all the others, and raised an eyebrow at his friend’s dropped jaw. “Uh… ‘dashi?”

Tadashi just continued staring at the girl stood by Callaghan, motionless, even when Fred waved a large green limb in front of his face. The rest of the group turned to look at him, as did Callaghan, who cleared his throat. “Mr. Hamada…?”

“Oh… oh! S-sorry. Sorry, I uh… hi. I’m Tadashi.” He stepped forward a little, holding out a hand, then withdrawing it when he saw how grease covered it was. He nervously rubbed his hands on his lab coat. “Uh, sorry, uhm…”

“Elsa. My name’s Elsa.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, with the same sheepish smile she’d worn in the coffee shop weeks ago.

“Elsa! That’s a cool name.” Fred grinned, looking between the two and made the same mental note everyone else was making. “Well… I suppose you should get back to work, my science minions!” he cried, ushering people in the general direction of Tadashi’s lab. With a chorus of “Pleasure to meet you, Elsa!” and “See you soon!”, Elsa and Callaghan left the common area and headed to the main doors.

GoGo walked to the nearest bin and spat out her gum. She then grabbed Tadashi and shoved him into his lab chair, pushed the back up against the desk, and spun him around to face them all.

“Explanation,  _now_.”


	3. First Day of School!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wednesday - First class together

Elsa felt like a tiny fish in a giant ocean. Despite Professor Callaghan’s rather in depth tour, San Fransokyo Institute of Technology was still  _huge_ , far larger than her father’s business premises, or any other building she’d stepped foot in for that matter. Holding tight to the strap of her bag, Elsa took a deep breath and followed the throng of teens and twenty-somethings up the short staircase to the main entrance.

If she thought it was busy outside, it was  _chaos_  inside. The main atrium was immense, almost covering the entirety of the ground floor, with corridors, staircases and elevators leading off to various areas of the Institute. It reminded her of the airports and bus garages she had needed to pass through in order to reach San Fransokyo, lots of fingers pointing up at signs, people calling out to one other across the hall, the occasional teacher steering people in the right direction with the help of other students, who were decked out from head to toe in SFIT branded clothing. Elsa tightened her grip on her bag strap, her knuckles almost white, the muscles in her shoulders and jaw tense.

Hundreds of students were milling about the spacious corridors, some on their way to their lecture halls or classrooms, keen to try and make a good impression in their first class by arriving a few minutes early. Others, mainly the older students, were stood around talking, sitting down on staircases, sharing images on phones. Occasionally a group of students would be joined by a friend they hadn’t seen over the summer break, and would burst into excited chatter. Every few metres she would catch sight of a lone student, stood much like she was, looking rather lost.

Elsa shook herself from her reverie and headed over to a large map in the middle of the hall, which was already surrounded by plenty of new students. She tried to see over the shoulders of the others to work out the route to her class, but the cloud of people was just too large and she had to step back. She would wait.

“Elsa?” A hand tapped her on the shoulder and she jumped, spinning around and coming face to face with, “Tadashi!”

The boy grinned, tipping his cap ever so slightly. “Hi. Want some clearer directions? We’re in the same class.”

Elsa gave him a small smile, releasing the death grip on her bag ever so slightly, “That… would be great.” Tadashi held his arm out to indicate the direction in which they were to travel, and they moved away from the mass of students at the map.

“Déjà vu, huh?”

“Pardon?”

“Déjà vu. Although, this time I’m not drawing you a map on a tiny scrap of paper…”

“Oh, right. Sorry.”

“No worries, first day of school is always a bit crazy, even when you’re our age. Everyone’s just a bit taller.” Tadashi grinned, pointing out a couple of landmarks to Elsa on the way to class. There were noticeboards all over the place, club sign up sheets and party posters plastered all over them. Small statues of important figures, some of whom were alumni or past teachers were dotted about, but most students were far more interested in the vending machines than finding out about the history of the Institute.

“Oh, whatever you do, don’t use the water fountains.” Elsa raised an eyebrow in question.

“A couple of years ago, the chemistry graduates decided they would prank the school on the last day – really hot summer day, mind you – by tainting the water tanks with Methylene Blue. They sabotaged all the drinks machines overnight, which meant everyone was drinking water by the gallon from the taps.”

“Oh boy…”

“Everyone was peeing blue for the rest of the week. The chemistry lot have a habit of doing things to the water or the taps at the beginning of the year to catch out any newbies that haven’t been warned, and at the end of the year, just because.”

Elsa let out a small chuckle. “Thanks for the warning.”

“There are a  _few_  things that are missing from Callaghan’s tour.” He grinned, leading her through a large cloud of students rummaging through their lockers, all the while peering behind him to make sure she was still there.

After a few more twists and turns, they reached the lecture hall with a few minutes to spare. They wandered in, Tadashi walking slowly up the stairs, obviously scanning the room for someone. Elsa stood at the bottom of the stairs, trying to spot an empty seat.

“Elsa,” She looked up at him. “Come on, there are a couple of seats going spare next to Wasabi.”

She cast another look over the crowd – any spare seats were smack bang in the middle of the row, which meant clambering over several students or right at the front. As much as she was looking forward to delving into the Professor’s subject, she didn’t think putting herself in Callaghan’s firing line on the first day would’ve been a great idea.

“Elsa? Y’coming?”

She hesitated, look back up at him.  _Better the devil you know, Elsa._  She walked up the stairs after him, following him almost right to the top. She sat on the end, Tadashi taking the seat next to Wasabi. She looked down the row; Wasabi was arranging his stationary on the tiny table in front of him. Hiro – Tadashi’s brother? Callaghan had briefly mentioned him, and the similarity between the two was striking – was next to him, moving Wasabi’s pens when his gaze was directed elsewhere. Next was Honey, rifling through her handbag for something. Next to her sat GoGo, her feet up on the chair in front of her, chewing away. Right at the end was Fred, who  _wasn’t_  wearing some sort of mascot suit.

_Mascot by day, except when dinosaur-sized chairs aren’t available._

Fred caught her gaze and gave her a wave, which created a ripple effect down the row, Elsa waving shyly back at them.

Tadashi didn’t wave, just grinned, but then he looked to the front of the class and to Callaghan, who had just entered the room. There was a great deal of shuffling as the students settled down, before the professor addressed the class and began the lesson.

* * *

An hour later, Elsa was following her classmates a short distance away as they left the hall, the other five chattering away at what the rest of the year would hold. Tadashi hung back and waited for the blonde to catch up.

“Hey. Y’alright? You look like that class gave you an ice cream headache.”

“What? Oh, no… I’m just… Professor Callaghan definitely knows his subject. And to have all that enthusiasm crammed into an hour is just…” She trailed off with a  chuckle and a small shrug.

Tadashi smiled, “I know. His first class is always a bit overwhelming; just think, he’s spent the whole summer working out what he’s going to say to a bunch of students who probably still want to be in bed, and he’s got half the time to say it than normal. His next classes will make a bit more sense. Two hours, so he explains everything a bit slower and in more detail. You’ll enjoy it.”

“I’m sure I will.” They fell into awkward silence; Elsa held onto the strap of her bag like it would blow away if she let go, Tadashi tugged his cap off his head and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Say, uhm… they guys and I… we were all going to go back to the café this afternoon and grab something to eat. Aunt Cass wants to know all about Hiro’s first day before he’s even finished it… would you like to come along?”

“Oh, I uhm… I wouldn’t want to intrude-”

“No, no, you wouldn’t be intruding. You’re our classmate, labmate… besides, it’s your first day too. You could celebrate surviving your first lecture with a chocolate doughnut?”

“Well…” She grinned sheepishly, fiddling with the end of her braid, “That  _was_ the best chocolate doughnut I’ve ever had…”

“Great! We’ll be going at 12, why don’t you meet us at the front steps a little bit before?” He turned his cap around in his hands nervously, waiting for her to respond.

“… just before 12, front steps. I’ll uhm… I’ll try not to get lost on the way there.”

Tadashi grinned, slinging his cap back on his head and walking backwards to the rest of the group, “If you’re not there by ten past, we’ll send out a search party!” She smiled, returned their waves, and head to the library.

 _It’s just lunch. You’ve been there before. And it’s_  chocolate.  _Nothing to worry about._  


	4. Homesick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thursday - Meeting the BH6/Hiro & Aunt Cass

“There are my two college boys!” Aunt Cass rushed an apology to her customer, who just waved her off, chuckling. “I’ll be there in a minute!”

Hiro held the door open for the group, Fred leading the way to a large table in the corner. Both boys then attempted to slide into the same comfy chair, which brought about an argument that was only resolved when Wasabi brought over a similar chair, lifted Hiro up and dumped him in it.

The others took their usual seats, the girls on one side, the boys on the other, Wasabi at the end, by virtue of his width. Elsa sat at the end of one of the table’s long edges, next to Honey, an empty seat next to her at the head of the table, presumably for Aunt Cass.

“So, Elsa,” Honey’s eyes were as curious as they normally were in the lab, “Whereabouts are you from?”

Hands clasped together under the table, Elsa paused for a moment.  _It’s an innocent question…_ “Norway.”

“Oooh! Can you teach us some swear words in Norwegi- ow!”

Pop. “Shut up, then.”

Honey rolled her eyes, “He asked me  _exactly_  the same thing when we met.”

“And you never tell me ho- ow! GoGo, quit it..!”

Pop. “Google them.”

“So, Norway? What’s it like?” Wasabi leaned in, arms crossed in front of him on the table. The others all turned to face her, and it was at this point that Tadashi returned with Aunt Cass walking behind him, both carrying trays with drinks and pastries, which were dished out quietly while Elsa spoke.

“Well… for the past ten years or so, I’ve been living in Oslo, it’s the same as any other large city, I guess. Some elements are quite traditional, there are a lot of older buildings even in the heart of the city.”

Aunt Cass leaned over to Tadashi, “Where’s this?” she whispered, dissecting her piece of cake with a fork.

“Norway.”

“Ooh!” Tadashi winced; Aunt Cass hadn’t quite moved far away enough from his ear. “I’ve heard such wonderful things about Norway, Sweden, all those sorts of places. Is it true that during the summer, the sun doesn’t set?”

Elsa nodded, “During the Summer Solstice, yes.”

“That would drive me insane. How does anyone get any  _sleep_?”

“You get heavier curtains,  _duh_.” Fred gave Hiro a retaliatory shove on the arm, which made the younger boy chuckle.

“It’s… hard if you’re not used to it. But it’s a lot more pleasant than the polar night. In the Winter, if you’re far North enough, you might not see the Sun rise for months.” Elsa shifted uncomfortably in her seat, while her audience pulled unpleasant faces at the thought. When she was a teenager, as much as she loved the freedom Winter brought for her in the form of naturally occurring snow, the darkness of the Solstice just reversed the positive effect on her mood. “In Oslo, it’s not so bad, but I grew up a little further north, so…” She shrugged.

“Where did you grow up?”

“Nærøyfjord.” The next few minutes were spent both writing and repeating the name, in order that the others were satisfied they were able to say it (“I  _need_ Norwegian swear words in my repetoir- ow!”).

“What was it like?”

Elsa looked at Tadashi, then at her mug, deep in thought for a moment. When she was twelve, Elsa, her sister and their parents had moved to Olso, in order to be better located for her father’s job. She had been loathed to leave the small fishing town –she had known most of the people there for as long as she could remember, and despite her ever increasing fear of hurting someone for reasons only her and her parents were privy to, she  _knew_  people well enough to interact with them occasionally without too much trepidation. She would avoid them whenever possible, but every so often, when she had snuck out of the house during the summer evenings to spend hours watching the midnight sun just kiss the horizon before rising slowly at the start of a new day, a neighbour might sit nearby, or wave at her as they jogged past. Though she missed her sister, these short interactions with others didn’t make her feel quite so lonely.

However, when they moved to Oslo, Elsa had the perfect reason not to leave her room. She knew nobody, save for her family and their housekeepers, Kai and Gerda. To venture out into the city without an adult was forbidden at their age, and the overwhelming possibility of her curse being discovered in a crowd of complete strangers was too much for a pre-teen Elsa to fathom. So she would stay in her room, burying herself in all the reading material her parents’ library had to offer, and the plethora of information provided to her by her laptop. She was tutored online or by her mother,  _if_  she had the time. Other than her parents, only Kai and Gerda would visit. The only times she saw her sister were mealtimes –if she actually attended –and even then Elsa, against her own wishes, would make these moments last for as little time as possible, lest her sister ask her to play when she was unable to ignore her.

As she got older and her powers became more and more unpredictable, any appointments she had to attend would be conducted as a conversation on speakerphone in her father’s office. On the rare occasion that she actually attended a face to face meeting with anyone outside her family, it would take all her strength and concentration to contain her powers and would normally result in an iced-over bedroom immediately afterwards. When her parents were killed in a crash involving one of her father’s private planes, she refused to see anybody for weeks. Eventually Kai and Gerda had managed to coax her from her room, and in a feat of organization the likes of which neither of the housekeepers, now guardians of the two, had ever seen, they replaced and repaired as much as they could of Elsa’s room, all but destroyed in the storm created when the eighteen year old had been informed of her parents’ early demise.

Three years of desperately trying to gain control, telephone conversations with therapists and a change in her medication regime, Elsa finally undertook the journey that she had been desperate to make for almost thirteen years.  
Norway to anywhere else.

“Elsa?”

She looked up, blinking. “Mhmm?”

Tadashi looked at her, curiosity giving way to concern, “I just wondered… what was Nærafjord like.”

_Almost got it._

“It’s uhm… it’s beautiful. It’s a fishing town, on a fjord. There’s a spot near the docks that gives you the most…  _amazing_  view of the sunset—”

“If it sets.”

Elsa grinned at Hiro, “ _If_  it sets. When the sun rises, it’s over the mountains. They surround the entire landscape; it’s almost like being on your own little island. They’re so tall, even in Summer the peaks are frozen over. The architecture is gorgeous; the marketplace looks like it’s still in the 1800s. When it snows, it’s like someone’s draped a blanket over absolutely everything. Perfect snow for snowball fights, building snowmen… and when the Northern Lights are overhead…” Elsa trailed off, her face falling into a small, solemn smile.

Tadashi’s voice was soft and low, “You miss it.”

He was right – she did miss it. She missed the spot on the lake where she would sit with her Mama, Papa and Anna, watching the sunset after a picnic, then wait for the sky to wake up and the lights to dance across the sky. She missed taking trips up into the mountains with her Papa and his friend Oaken or making snowmen in the back garden with Mama and Anna.

Elsa nodded, barely, wringing her hands underneath the table, biting her lower lip. Tadashi wanted to hug her right there and then, but Aunt Cass beat him to it, the shock on Elsa’s face evident.

“Maybe one day you can show us some pictures? I’d love to see it.” Aunt Cass grinned, putting an arm around Elsa and giving her a squeeze before letting go again. A short hug, but enough to snap Elsa out of her reminiscence.

“Oooh, no. Pictures never do it justice.” Honey shook her head, “There’s _nothing_  like seeing your home town again after a while away. It’s why I spend at least a couple of weeks with my grandparents every year.”

“… I’ve got it.”

“… got what?”

“I hope it’s not contagious.”

“That’s  _it!_  ” Tadashi leapt up from his chair, the wooden back hitting the wall behind him, before running off up the stairs. A split second later, he ran back, pushed the chair back in, apologised, then ran back upstairs. The group and several nearby patrons stared after him, a mixture of confused looks, frowns and shocked faces looking towards the stairs.

“… some of those swear words would come in handy right about now, Els-  _ow!”_


	5. A Helping Hand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Friday - Building Baymax

“This is Tadashi Hamada, and this is the first test of my robotics project.”

Tadashi stepped forward and tapped the chip compartment on Baymax’s chest, watching his face as it clicked back into place.

There was a clatter as his chalk board hit the floor, and a shrill screech filtered through the lab floor.

“Aah! Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop!” He slapped the compartment and the chip re-emerged, causing the noise to stop abruptly. Tadashi rubbed his ears, blinking furiously.

“What the  _hell_  was that?!” GoGo’s head was first to appear in the doorway, followed by Fred, Wasabi, Honey and Elsa. All wore pained expressions, most were still rubbing their ears.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I was testing Baymax and… well. You heard.”

Pop. “Yeah. We heard. I think we’ll be hearing it for a few hours.”

Tadashi sighed and sat back down, legs sprawled in front of him, arms crossed over his chest, looking at Baymax, muttering to himself. The group left him to it.

* * *

“Okay! Let’s go, let’s go, let’s  _go,_  buddy.”

Elsa looked up from her book at Tadashi’s door, with a slightly worried look on her face. Wasabi had a similar expression and got up from the common room’s fourth-hand sofa, walking to the door, peering in.

“Right. Seventh test.”

Elsa listened; there was a pause, presumably Tadashi turning Baymax on, the robot booting up…

“Wait, wait, wait,  _stop!_ ” Elsa frowned. It sounded like Tadashi was fighting with something and taking the lab with it. She looked up at the door, only to find it now wide open, Wasabi inside, fighting alongside Tadashi to keep Baymax still.  
“I got it, I got- .. I don’t got it!”

“I thought the snowman look was supposed to be  _non-threatening?!_ ”

“ _It is!_  ”

Elsa ran over, book abandoned on the floor and while the two boys struggled to keep Baymax’s arms pinned, she reached over Tadashi’s shoulder and tapped the panel on the robot’s chest. It slowly came to a stop, Tadashi and Wasabi leaning on it and panting.

“Are you two okay?”

“We’re fine.”

“Fine?! Dude, I just wrestled a six foot “cuddly” spectre of death!”

“He’s harmless! He just needs some tweaks.”

“ _Some?!”_

“Guys!” Elsa put a hand on their arms very briefly to get their attention, “Guys. I think it might be a good idea if we  _all_  shut down for the night, don’t you?”

* * *

Ever the early riser, Elsa was the first to arrive in the labs that morning. Walking to her workbench, she put her bag in the drawer, and her coat on the back of the chair. Turning towards the coffee machine, she noticed Tadashi’s door was ajar. Frowning, she went to the door and peered inside.

On the table, fast asleep, was Tadashi. His cap was askew on his head, his chalk board – now numbered ‘33’ – discarded to the side, a torch on the floor. Strewn across the floor were various tools, with most of them lying at Baymax’s feet.

_He must’ve been working through the night this time…_

Elsa started over to the desk, but hesitated. She didn’t have the heart to wake him. When she realised she was watching the man sleep,  _you weirdo_ , she quietly made her way over to Baymax, who had been partially dismantled in an effort to fix whatever had happened this time.

She peered into the robot’s inner workings, curious as to whether she could work out what had kept Tadashi from making his way home the previous night. Glancing down at the tangle of wires spewing onto the floor, Elsa caught sight of a tablet sat on the floor beside the robot’s feet, and frowned at the code on the screen. Biting her lip, she looked back at Tadashi… then she picked up the tablet and corrected a couple of lines that had no hope of working.

Another two hours passed before she heard anyone else coming into the labs, the sounds of voices alerting her to just how long she had spent tinkering with Tadashi’s project. She cringed, feeling slightly guilty, before downing tools and turning to sneak back out of the lab.

Tadashi was sat upright in the chair, cap on the desk, arms folded, grinning. She let out a rather un-Elsa like squeal and jumped. “How long have you been awake?”

“Ooh… from about the time you started cursing in Norwegian.” He smirked, “At least, it sounded like cursing.” Her face flushed red with embarrassment, and he wandered over, peering over her shoulder at what she’d been doing.

“Tadashi, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interfere, I just-”

“Oh wow…” He scrolled slightly through the code, dragging his finger slowly up the screen she held in her hands, “I never thought of that.”

“… what?”

“You’ve managed to simplify  _dozens_  of lines of code… this will sort out the conflict that was screwing with the defib safeties… and this line will-.” He stopped himself, and grinned at her again, “Thank you.”

“Uhm… you’re welcome?”

“Listen… if you ever get bored again in the early hours… or the late ones, I’d appreciate your input. Thirty-three tests and he’s nowhere  _near_  operational.” He patted the robot on the head, resting his hand there and sighing slightly, “I’m running out of ideas.”

* * *

Thus, their partnership began. Elsa would work on her own project during the day, and work with Tadashi during the evening. When she’d finished with her own project, she started working exclusively on Baymax. She would turn up a couple of hours before anybody else, head into Tadashi’s lab, put her bag in the drawer of the desk Tadashi had  _insisted_  she take, her coat on the back of the chair and get to work.

Tadashi would arrive a couple hours later, more often than not with coffee and pastries from his Aunt’s café, they would discuss what Elsa had done already, and they would continue from there. They conducted dozens of tests, morning, noon and all too often at night, one of them asleep at the desk, the other holding the chalk board in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other. Thanks to safety features Tadashi had implemented after the seventh test, or as Wasabi called it, ‘The Test That Shall Not Be Numbered’, Elsa was able to conduct a couple of her own midnight tests without fear of Baymax sending her flying across the lab.

Slowly, but steadily, they appeared to be making progress.

* * *

“Okay. This is the…” Tadashi paused – he’d lost count weeks ago.

“Eighty-forth.” Elsa deadpanned. She certainly hadn’t.

“-eighty-forth test.” He put the chalkboard aside, and tapped the button with a sigh. They’d reached a plateau. The past dozen or so tests had always had the same result – absolutely nothing. No sounds, no lights, no change to the robot’s facial expression. The frustration had meant the pair were at their wits end, arguing over the tiniest little things. Tadashi’s coffee consumption had skyrocketed, Elsa’s insomnia had returned with a vengeance, and the combination was enough to ensure those who shared the same floor – heck, the same  _building_  – kept a respectable distance from them after they had tested Baymax.

In addition to the original ‘When will Baymax finally work?’ betting pool, Fred had now started up a ‘When will Tadashi and Elsa kill each other?’ pool. It was the Institute’s best kept secret.

Tadashi waited, listening to the quiet hum of Baymax’s hardware whirring to life, yet again wondering whether this might be the test that finally worked, or if it would be just another failure.

“Hello. I am Baymax.”

He stared into the robots beady black eyes. Behind him, Elsa had moved out of her chair and had stood beside Tadashi, blue eyes wide, gaping.

“Do either of you require medical assistance?”

“It worked!” Tadashi jumped back, his arms outstretched, a stunned look on his face. He turned on the spot, hopping around the lab. “This is  _amazing!_ ”

Elsa just kept staring up at the robot in awe, a grin forming on her face. She reached out to touch Baymax’s chest –only a few hours ago, he had had no vinyl covering and his inner workings had been strewn everywhere. It had taken  _months…_  but he was finally working.

Baymax cocked his head slightly, looking down at her, “Do you require medical assistance?”

Elsa laughed, unable to do much else. Then, she squealed as Tadashi ran over and lifted her up into the air, “Elsa, he works! He works, he works, he works! We did it!” He was bouncing up and down, crushing her in a hug, but then he suddenly put her back down on the ground and kissed her on the cheek.

Elsa reached up and put a hand to where he had just kissed her, blushing furiously. An inch or so to the right and it would have been her lips, rather than her cheek. She looked out of the corner of her eye and saw the moment when Tadashi’s mind registered what he had done, his mouth turning into a perfect ‘o’. He winced, holding his hands up apologetically, when Baymax broke in with, “You are both experiencing raised levels of endorphins, commonly associated with extreme excitement and happiness. Are you happy?”

Tadashi was the first to speak, though he wasn’t entirely sure at whom his answered was directed, “Yes. Very,  _very_  happy.” He couldn’t help but grin from ear to ear, both still red from his earlier display, “Just wait until my brother sees you. You’re going to help so many people, buddy. So many!” He chuckled, the euphoria slowly melting away, his racing heart slowly calming. “Well, that’s all for now.” He cast a look over his shoulder at Elsa, then looked back to Baymax.

“We’re satisfied with our care.”


	6. Signs & Symptoms

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Saturday - Science Fair/Finals Week

“Tadashi,  _stop_   _worryin_ g.”  _Jøss, t_ _he irony of_  me  _telling_  him  _that…_

“Tadashi, you are experiencing increased adrenaline levels, typically indicating a fight or flight response. Are you in danger?”

“No, no I’m not in danger. Well. I might be if Callaghan’s mark isn’t high enough, and then I’ll have to pull a  _miracle_  outta the bag to not flunk and-”

“Tadashi!” Elsa timed his pacing and grabbed him by the upper arms just as he turned around. When she was happy he wasn’t going anywhere, she smiled, “Tadashi, it will be  _fine_. Baymax is  _amazing_. What you have created is better than  _anything_  else that Callaghan or any of the other people in here are going to see. Stop worrying. Okay?” She looked directly at him, trying to see the same confidence his eyes were filled with before they’d set up for the fair. It took her a few moments to realise that her hands had slid down his upper arms to his forearms, their hands almost touching. She immediately let go.

Looking down, Tadashi let out a sigh, “Okay… okay. Right. It’s going to be fine. It’s going to be great!” He smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“That’s the spirit,” Elsa smiled back, “I’ll be back in a few minutes,”

Tadashi watched her go, sinking into the nearest chair when she was out of sight.

“You know,” a voice said behind him, making him jump slightly, “You  _could_  just ask her out.”

“And what do  _you_  know about starting off relationships, little brother.”

“Enough to know that you’re doing a  _lousy_  job of starting one, big brother.” Hiro hopped up and sat on the edge of their display table. “I know you like her. We all do.”

“We?”

“Fred, Wasabi, Honey, GoGo and me. Ever since she started here, you’ve been all…” Hiro sighed dramatically, clasping his hands over his heart, his eyes looking dreamily up to the ceiling. Tadashi chuckled nervously. “No, I haven’t.”

“Tadashi, when Elsa is in close proximity to you, your heart rate increases, your pupils dilate and your attention span seemed significantly lessened if not engaged in direct conversation with her. These signs are also present, albeit to a lesser degree, when Elsa is mentioned by others. I have noticed this occurs quite frequently in the lab.”

“See? Even  _Baymax_  can see it! Why can’t you?”

Tadashi groaned, pulling his cap over his face, then dropping it into his lap, “Fine. Fine! Yes. I like her. But what would be the point in asking her out – half the time I don’t know if she feels the same way or wants to get as far away from me as possible.”

“Tadashi, I have noticed the same physiological effects on Elsa’s heart rate, pupil dilation and concentration, though she seems far more able to focus on other tasks in addition to interacting with you. I have noticed this is a common ability in both Honey and GoGo as well.”

Hiro chuckled and slid off the table, “It’s called multitasking, Baymax. Aunt Cass is a mast-”

“Wait. Elsa… she reacts the same way?”

“Yes, Tadashi.”

Tadashi leaned back against the table, stunned.  _Elsa… might like me too? … nah, come off it, ‘dashi. You can’t diagnose that sort of thing… but you’re a scientist, it’s a theory. Test it._

* * *

“Very good, Mr. Hamada.  _Very_  good.” Callaghan nodded, walking around Baymax slowly for what felt like the hundredth time, “This could revolutionise nursing. And you say you have blueprints for a smaller version?”

“Yes, well, the design is very similar to Baymax, but the functionality would need to be tailored for the user’s needs. However, given the smaller size, it could be used in a home environment, so there are a whole host of different applications.”

Callaghan continued his methodical inspection of Baymax. He asked Baymax about his functions and his technical specifications; he asked Baymax to scan him, and then Tadashi agreed to be scanned himself (Callaghan found the raised blood pressure to be rather amusing). After several more questions put to Tadashi, and a couple to Elsa – who had taken a back seat given that her own project had already received a passing grade – Callaghan spent a few minutes filling in a checklist, before turning back to Tadashi.

“Excellent work, Mr. Hamada. I’ve not been able to give that comfortable an A in a long while.” The professor smiled, with a hint of pride, patting Tadashi on the shoulder before moving to the next display. For a few moments, Tadashi didn’t move, his grin getting wider and wider, until he turned, jumping on the spot much like he had done when he and Elsa had finally gotten Baymax to work. Repeating his actions to the letter, he swooped in to pick Elsa up… but he stopped himself, stood in front of her with his arms outstretched, “I uhm… I won’t kiss you on the cheek this time.” He smiled warmly, but shifted from foot to foot rather awkwardly, as if he was regretting his decision to open his arms up, but couldn’t back out.

Elsa didn’t quite know what possessed her to give him a hug, but she stepped forward and gingerly put her own arms around his waist. “Told you it would be fine.” She wasn’t sure if she was reassuring Tadashi or herself. But when she felt his arms wrap around her, holding her tight enough that she could feel the warmth of his body radiating through his t-shirt, she felt… safe.

He kept it brief, and Elsa felt slightly saddened at the loss of contact. She looked up at him and smiled, then stood up on tip toes, doing what he promised he wouldn’t, and kissed him on the cheek. “Well done, Tadashi.”

She was grateful when Aunt Cass arrived with Hiro; the news of his A grade had spread quickly. She quietly slipped away while his family and friends were congratulating him, the feeling of safety slowly being replaced by dread.

_You can’t stay. You’ll end up hurting him, too._


	7. Trapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sunday - Anything Goes!

The fire had spread so quickly, it was a mystery what had set it off. Elsa had been walking through the exhibits, occasionally spotting one of her lab-mates ogling over something – or in Honey’s case, getting actively involved with a chemistry experiment that covered everything in a thick orange goo, that set both her and the potential student into a frenzy of excited conversation.

There had been an explosion on the level below the Exposition Hall, that much she knew. It had made the entire building shake, the air punctuated with several screams. As soon as the word “Fire!” had been shouted, people had started running for the exits, experiments and displays forgotten.

Elsa had stood still, looking desperately for signs of her classmates, standing her ground whilst terrified students and visitors shoved their way past her to get to the exit. She looked back at where she had last seen Honey – GoGo was desperately trying to pull her and the younger girl from the orange goo, but as Elsa took a step in their direction, Wasabi swooped in and pulled them both free, running out with GoGo in tow.

She breathed a small sigh of relief and continued looking, ushering terrified people towards other exits as she tried to spot Fred, Hiro, Aunt Cass… Tadashi.

She caught sight of a large blue lizard stood on the main stage. Ever the mascot, Fred was directing people to the main entrance with a cheery grin on his face. Aunt Cass climbed onto the stage and dragged Fred off by the head of his costume, shouting something about him  _not_  being a fire breathing lizard and susceptible to grievous bodily harm.

Right behind his Aunt was Tadashi, Hiro on his back, clearly looking around for something – or someone. Elsa breathed out a sigh of relief at seeing that they were on their way out. She caught a glimpse of Baymax at the exit, and felt an odd sense of relief that the robot was okay. Finally taking a step towards her own safety, she heard a series of sharp banging noises behind her, and caught sight of a panicked face in the window of a door – Callaghan. She ran over, trying to avoid the bits of debris that were now beginning to fall.

Elsa turned the handle and shoved at the door, but it had started to warp in the heat and wouldn’t budge. She shouldered it, kicked it, to no avail. Running out of ideas, she put her hand to the door, willing the wood to cool down. 

Callaghan was still tugging on the door, oblivious to Elsa’s efforts. Unsure as to whether she had managed to decrease the temperature, Elsa shouldered the door again. Callaghan, desperation mounting, had pulled hard on the door handle again at the exact same time, using his entire body weight to force the door open. Elsa’s momentum carried her halfway into the room and stumbling over, her shoulder and hip making harsh contact with the floor. Groaning, she sat up, only just catching a glimpse of Callaghan fleeing, without so much as a quick glance over his shoulder.

She watched as an experiment exploded near to him and took the surrounding area with it, blocking a side exit and her view of Callaghan’s escape.  
She wondered, briefly, if he survived.

Her whole left side throbbing from her fall, Elsa pushed herself and started to navigate the fiery remains of the Exposition Hall. A large portion of the ceiling fell down a few feet beside her, and she flung her arms up in an attempt to shield herself from the debris. Glowing embers flew around her in the wake of the impact, several landing on her arms, her sleeves torn from her assault on the door. Sparks flew everywhere, the smell of melting plastic lingering in the air.

She watched as one of the embers on her arm hissed slightly, before slowly dimming. She heard a hissing from a sprinkler above her head, the liquid evaporating before it had even left the pipe. It was obviously hot.  _She_  should have been hot. But she wasn’t.

Of course, she knew why – her  _damn_  curse. It had plagued her for all her life, and now all it seemed capable of doing was proving her with personal air conditioning. She couldn’t even create the tiniest bit of snow to clear a path, or raise a barrier to stop her from getting her head taken off.

_I’m going to die by fire, like some witch in the 1800s. How fitting._

She scanned the room again, a tiny part of her hoping there might still be a way out.

 _I don’t even know if I can be burnt. Can’t exactly walk through fire to_  test  _it either… I can’t even_  die  _properly._

Elsa’s glimmer of hope vanished.

_At least Tadashi will be safe._

He was safe from the fire and in a few minutes, he’d be safe from her. Anna too. Oh god,  _Anna_. How would she react when she found out?

_You’ve been all but dead to her for years, it won’t make any difference. Hell, it’ll be easier for her. She can stop hoping you’ll change. Kristoff, Kai and Gerda will take care of her, like they have for years. Unlike you._

She came to a slow stop, amidst the wreckage of yet another display. She couldn’t make out a clear path to safety, fire raging in every direction. She’d barely made it twenty feet from the room in which she’d rescued Callaghan, and the exit seemed to get further and further away with each passing moment. Acrid black smoke was draped over the room like a blanket, and it was getting harder to breathe. Harder to think. Harder to keep going.

_What’s the point?_

She looked down at her hands – she could feel the ice just under her skin, but It was nowhere near strong enough to rear its ugly head and save her. She chuckled in disbelief.  _Looks like your mantra finally worked, Papa._

She dropped heavily to her knees, ignoring the shooting pain it caused and shut her eyes, revelling somewhat in her light-headedness, listening to the roaring of flames licking the walls, the crackling and popping of the displays, glass shattering, someone shouting her name…

_Wait… what?_

She opened her eyes – even in those few seconds the fire had engulfed the front entrance – and saw a dark figure running the wrong way through the doors, a cap flying off his head due to back draught.

_No… no, no, no…_

“Elsa!”

_Tadashi, no!_

She didn’t realise she actually shouted her plea aloud until Tadashi’s eye made contact with hers, and then it was too late. He ran to her, yelling her name, telling her to hold on, not paying enough attention to what was going on around him… or  _above_  him.

Elsa saw the beam fall long before the sound made him look up and she reacted instinctively, her head clear and mind focused. Throwing her arm out, aiming just to the side of him, a huge pillar of ice shot up from the ground and stopped the beam from landing right on top of him. The flames licked at the blue-tinted ice, but it didn’t melt. The glow of the flames refracted through the pillar, casting eerie streams of orange light over the scene. Despite the situation, Tadashi couldn’t help but admire its beauty, stunned at what Elsa had  _somehow_  managed to create.

Tadashi’s look of shock and awe turned to horror as he watched the fallen support beam simply fall in the same direction he’d been running, unable to do anything.

His terrified face was the last thing Elsa saw before her whole world went dark.

* * *

“Tadashi… ‘dashi, sweetie, come on. You need to get that looked at.” Aunt Cass sighed as Tadashi just shook his head again, bandaged hands in his lap, staring at the blonde lying on the gurney in front of him.

“It’s alright Ms. Hamada. If he prefers, I can tend to Tadashi here?” He didn’t tear his eyes away to look at the nurse… but he nodded. If only to stop Aunt Cass from worrying about  _him_.  _He’s_  fine _._

_Elsa’s not._

He turned slightly in his chair, holding out his hands for the nurse, who diligently tended to the burns on his palms and forearms before bandaging them up again, more delicately than the EMTs had had the time to. She handed him a soft drink and some chocolate, saying something about returning with antibiotics and pushing a button if he needs anything, before he was left alone again.

He put the drink on the bedside table. He couldn’t bring himself to look at the chocolate bar and he brushed it from his lap to the floor.

He waited.

People came by. Aunt Cass & Hiro were the most frequent visitors. At one point, she mentioned something about Anna and planes. GoGo, Honey, Fred, Wasabi paid a visit too, all shaken up, but none the worse for wear. They didn’t know what happened to Callaghan. Tadashi didn’t catch what they found out from the fire department.

He just waited.

“Tadashi?”

Baymax, somewhat deflated, managed to squeeze into the bed area, the curtains falling back around him.

“Tadashi?”

He gave a small hum in response, but nothing more. He heard the tell-tale beeping of Baymax performing a scan.

“Tadashi, my scan indicates that you are suffering from smoke inhalation, first degree burns to your face and neck, and second degree burns to your hands. You are also suffering from shock and dehydration. You should be in the bed assigned to you by the medical staff.”

“… not now, Baymax.”

“Tadashi,” Baymax took a few steps closer, and gently wrapped his arms around Tadashi’s upper body, the robot’s head resting on his. “Elsa will be okay.”

Both were silent for a few minutes, Baymax content to hug his creator in order to try and assist him in some way – the doctors and nurses had forbidden the unknown, untested, unqualified robot from providing medical treatment, despite the protests of his companions.

“… Baymax?”

“Yes, Tadashi?”

“Could… could you scan Elsa for me? The nurses… I didn’t really hear what they told me earlier.”

“Of course.” He immediately released Tadashi from his hug, stood up straight and directed his gaze towards the bed.

“Elsa is also suffering from smoke inhalation, though there is little evidence of burns. She has a severe concussion and bruising to her left side. Her body temperature is quite low,” - Tadashi made a mental note of that one - “which is a symptom of shock. She is also dehydrated, however this is being corrected by the intravenous infusion of sodium chloride and acetaminophen 450mg – I would recommend this for you as well, Tadashi, if you are not going to consume the drink provided to you by the nurse.”

“Yeah, yeah… later.” There was a pause, and Tadashi hoped that was the end of it. Much to his dismay, Baymax started talking again.

“Her serotonin levels are extremely low, most likely due to the dissipating levels of Sertraline 50mg in her system – are the nurses aware of her current medication? This is important when new medications are prescribed.”

Baymax’s chest brightened, the chemical makeup of the drug flashing up on his chest, along with a short list of reasons for its use.

Tadashi frowned; Elsa had never mentioned anything like that, and the reason became evident as he read the list, curiosity getting the better of him.  _Of could she hadn’t you dumbass. That’s_  damn  _personal._  He suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of guilt for having asked Baymax to scan her without her knowledge, and resolved to tell her as soon as she was well enough to hit him for it. “I… I dunno. I’ll make sure they know.”

“She has several small cuts and abrasions caused by debris, similar to your own. They are not serious, but should be kept clean to minimize any risk of infection.”

“… is that it?”  _Please say that’s it._

“No, Tadashi,” His face fell. Baymax continued, “Her heart rate and breathing are increasing, which indicates she is regaining consciousness.”

Tadashi immediately pushed himself up in his chair, his hands screaming in pain, but he ignored it, taking one of Elsa’s hands in his own and leaning closer. “Elsa?” Nothing. “Elsa, can you hear me?” Carefully, he lifted a hand to her face and caressed her cheek with his thumb.

She groaned.

He grinned, giving her hand a squeeze, ignoring his own injuries. “Elsa, come on, open your eyes. C’mon. I won’t stop bugging you until I see ‘em. Come on. Open up. Open up, open up, ope-”

“Okay, okay… stop being so loud.” She couldn’t help but smile slightly, opening her eyes by the slightest margin, a blurry Tadashi coming slowly into focus.

“Hey there.”

“Hi.” She sounded just as hoarse as he did.

“How’re you feeling?”

“… like I just got hit by a truck.”

“Don’t remember that exhibit.”

“Was right at the back. Not much fun.” Her smile faded slowly, looking away from Tadashi.

“Hey… it’s alright, you’re okay. You’re safe now.” He squeezed her hand slightly, running his thumb across her knuckles. “… you scared me.”

“Sor-”

“No.” He took her by the chin and gently turned her to face him, “No, you don’t apologise. None of this was your fault. Just… promise me you won’t do it again.”

She didn’t respond, just turned her head away, wincing as she did so. But she was determined not to look at Tadashi. She couldn’t.

“Elsa… Elsa, please. I don’t know what went on to make you want to give up like that, but… let me help.  _I_  won’t give up on you. I can’t. I…” He swallowed hard, looking down at the bed. “I can’t lose you.”

There was silence, neither of them looking at the other. Tadashi was the first to move, leaning in close and placing a lingering kiss on Elsa’s temple. When he pulled back, her head turned slowly, watery eyes wide as saucers, staring at him. Tadashi stood his ground, unmoving, not willing to keep his feelings hidden away any longer.

“You were safe.” Elsa’s voice was so quiet, Tadashi almost didn’t catch it. He frowned, but dared not interrupt her. “You’d got out, you were away from the fire… away from me…” Her voice hitched and she looked away again. “That’s why.”

Tadashi’s frown deepened. Cautiously, he pushed a little further, fearing if she closed herself off this time, he’d never get her back. “Elsa… why do you think I’d be safer away from you?”

Valiantly trying to fend off tears, she wrung her hands together. A nervous habit she’d had from day one – he was finally connecting the dots. “Because… because of wh- … what I can do.”

“Elsa… you saved my life with what you can do. It’s amazi-”

“ _No_. No, it’s not, it’s a  _curse_. Sure, you think it’s great now, but I’ll end up hurting you just like I hurt my sister.” Another dot connected. Tadashi took her hands, and refused to let go of them, no matter how hard she tugged, “Tadashi-”

“Elsa. It’s not a curse. A curse can’t possibly so amazing, wonderful, beautiful- can’t possibly be part of you. I refuse to believe it. Ah!” He raised his eyebrows to silence her objections. “No. Can’t believe it. Won’t believe it. It’s part of you, and I love it just as much as the rest of you.”

Elsa stilled. “… what?”

“I love you, Elsa. And I’m going to do everything I can to make you love you too. I won’t give up on you.”

Elsa couldn’t fight the lone tear that slid down her cheek, nor the tears that followed. Tadashi let go of her hands, but before she could mourn the loss of contact, he sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her into a hug, rubbing her back.

“So… do you promise?”

A sniff. “Huh?”

“Promise you won’t scare me like that again?”

A pause… then a nod. “Promise.”

Grinning, Tadashi kissed the top of her head, mindful of the huge bump that was hidden under her ash covered hair. “Thank you. Now,” He pulled back, hands on her upper arms. “Wanna help me with my chocolate? Nurse’s orders, y’know.”

She gave him a watery smile, and a small nod. He retrieved the previously discarded chocolate bar, broke it in two and handed her half. They sat and ate quietly, Elsa’s cool hand in Tadashi’s bandaged one, soothing in more than one way.

_Yeah. We’ll be okay._


	8. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bonus Round!

“So, what did you find out from Baymax’s scan?”

Tadashi’s hand stopped in mid air, mouth open. When Elsa added, “At the hospital,” his hand twitched and the pancake on his fork landed heavily in the syrupy mess on his plate.

“I uh… I…” His shoulders drooped, and he sighed, “Elsa, I’m sorry. I just… I was worried, I hadn’t heard what the nurse had told me earlier – not that she would’ve told me in such detail, but – wait, that probably would’ve been better, I should’ve just asked the nurse again, bu-”

“ _Tadashi._ ” Smiling, Elsa reached forward and took his hand, running a cool thumb gently over the slowly healing scars marring the back, snaking up his forearms towards his elbows. “It’s okay. I’m not angry. … okay, I was a bit angry when Baymax told me, but  _I understand_.”

“… not gonna hit me again?”

“Hey, I had good reason to hit you, running into a burning building like that.”

“But you-”

“Let’s… let’s get back to my original question, shall we?” They’d had this circular blame game argument several times over the past few days, both trying to convince the other that they weren’t at fault, whilst at the same time both still inwardly blaming themselves for putting the other in danger. “What did you find out?”

Tadashi poked absent mindedly at his food. “Will… he told me about your injuries, obviously. Kept agreeing with the nurses’ choice in treatment and having a go at me for not subjecting myself to their needles.”

“Well, he  _is_  a nurse.”

“I know… he uhm… mentioned your low body temperature…”

 _That_  had been an interesting conversation. Anna and Kristoff had reached the hospital only minutes before Aunt Cass and Hiro were leaving to take Tadashi and Elsa back home, and Anna had hugged her sister almost to the point of re-admission. Elsa had been mulling it over since she had heard her sister was flying to see her, whilst trying to ignore the noises of the hospital and nearby patients, and had decided it would have been wholly unfair to explain to Tadashi what he had seen, whilst omitting it from the story she was going to tell her sister.

As soon as they had reached the café, Elsa had taken her sister and Tadashi by the hand and dragged them both up to the room he still shared with Hiro, before sitting them both down and recounting almost everything that had happened on and since that fateful day, when she was eight, and Anna was five.

It seemed to take forever. Neither Anna nor Tadashi had interrupted Elsa once, and she had been grateful – once she had started talking, she had found it unbelievably therapeutic and had been unable to stop, save for a small display near the beginning of the tale, when she had held out her hand, palm facing the ceiling, and let her curse –  _“No, Elsa,_  gift _.” –_  flow freely in the form of a small snow cloud, white flakes landing on Tadashi’s bed.

She told them everything – why she had been unable to attend her parents’ funeral with Anna; her desperate need to get away from her sister, her home, her life in Norway; how happy – relatively – she was in San Fransokyo –  and despite neglecting to specify the main reason as to why, the looks between Elsa and Tadashi were more than enough for Anna.

She told them how scared she was that her feelings for her new friends would lead to them getting hurt. How when the opportunity had arisen to ensure that _everyone_  she loved was safe, she had taken it without question and with all but one regret – that she hadn’t told those people she loved them when she had the chance.

Elsa had trailed off into silence, unable to continue, her throat constricted, her eyes burning, cheeks damp with tears. She could hear faint echoes of fire burning around her, smell the smoke that had almost consumed her.

After several seconds, Anna had finally processed everything that Elsa had told them, and had opened her arms to her sister, who after a brief hesitation had all but fallen into them, clinging onto the redhead for dear life, mumbling apologies through tears. Tadashi had let them be for a moment, before scooping the both of them into a bigger hug. The messy tears died down after a while, Elsa falling asleep first, then Anna, and finally Tadashi.

Aunt Cass and Kristoff had come to check on them a few hours later, finding Elsa inbetween Anna and Tadashi, red hair all over the place, Elsa’s blonde head tucked under Tadashi’s chin, the former snoring quietly.

Hiro had taken a picture and two days later, was  _still_  walking around with a self satisfied smirk. Tadashi had given up his attempts at retrieving the photo, as it had already been disseminated amongst his closest friends, who had nothing but positive comments to say (apart from occasional “I knew it!”) Instead, he spent as much time as possible with Elsa – when her sister wasn’t with her. It was Kristoff who had finally suggested that they do a little bit of sightseeing, giving Tadashi a look as he dragged Anna down the stairs and out the door after breakfast.

Tadashi looked up at Elsa, who was patiently waiting for him to continue.

“Uh… he …menshundcurntmedcashun…”

Elsa choked slightly on her pancakes and looked at him with a bemused grin, “He what?”

Tadashi sighed. “He… mentioned your current medication. He thought the nurses needed to know.”

“Ah.”

The pair fell into silence, Elsa poking at her chocolate covered pancakes, Tadashi chewing on his lip. “Not that it matters to me, I just-”

“I take them for depression and anxiety. I’ve been on them since I was 15. The doctors, they… they thought it was just a phase, I’d grow out of it, it was just hormones… then when they finally decided that perhaps being a teenager isn’t _actually_  supposed to be as difficult as  _I_  was making it out to be, my parents took me to see a therapist, and then… meds.” She shrugged, taking another bite.

“Do they help?”

She gave him a non-committal shrug, “Most of the time. But it’s not just them alone, I uh… y’know when I left early on Tuesday? And I refused to tell anyone why?”

“You didn’t want anyone to know you were going to therapy.”

She nodded again.

“Y’know… you don’t have to do this on your own anymore.” He pushed both their plates aside, took the cutlery from Elsa’s hands and held them, leaning forward on the table. “You’ve got all of us to help you. Aunt Cass, the lab lot, _your sister_ … even Fred in a pinch.” Elsa giggled and Tadashi smiled warmly at the rare sound. “You don’t have to tell the others  _everything_. But you can let it go when you’re around me. I won’t mind. I quite like snow, actually. No, seriously!” He grinned at Elsa’s raised eyebrow, “I’m not just saying that, I have a snowboard and everything.  _But,_ ” he said, trying to steer the conversation back to… wherever he was trying to lead to, “But. I mean it. I’m here for you. _Aishiteru._ ”

He gave her hands a squeeze, and was about to let go and let Elsa get on with her pancakes, but  _she_  wasn’t letting go. He looked at their hands, then up at her, wondering if he’d perhaps gone a little too far this time. She was nervously biting her lip, and Tadashi thought it was the more adorable thing ever. Until she opened her mouth to speak.

“Jeg elsker deg også.”

Despite his attempts to learn, his knowledge of Norwegian was limited to a smattering of basic conversation, “Luftputebåten min er full av ål,” and the curse words he’d picked up from the lab. But there was no mistaking what Elsa had just said, regardless of how softly she had spoken. He was as giddy as he had been the first time he had heard her laugh, and his heart felt like it was going to beat right out of his chest. He pulled his hands and Elsa towards him, mentally cursing his decision to sit across from her at the tiny table rather than next to her. He leaned forward and just as he could feel her breath on his lips, just as he saw her eyes close,  _just_  as he closed his eyes and tilted his head slightly…

… he heard the noise of a camera shutter, and Hiro’s snort of laughter.

Their foreheads touching, eyes still closed, he mumbled “… I’ll catch him, you stuff him into your sister’s suitcase.”

Tadashi felt Elsa sit back, her hands leave his, heard her stand. He sighed, but before he could stand to murder his brother for ruining the moment he’d been dreaming of for months, he felt a cool hand tilt his head up and to the side, just before Elsa bent down to kiss him. He raised a hand to her jaw, running it into her hair and pulling her slightly closer. Both wore daft grins on their faces as they parted, brown eyes getting lost in blue.

“I think your pain in the butt younger brother can wait a little while, don’t you?”


End file.
